Budget Bathroom Makeover Done! (pics)
Hi everyone,
I posted about a month ago about a budget bathroom makeover that I was embarking on. Many of you helped me with my work on refinishing my golden oak vanity and figuring out what to do about the very dated medicine cabinet and Hollywood lights. Thank you again for all your help.
Anyway, I have finished the project and I'm very happy with the final outcome. I'm posting some before and afters as well as a source list/budget. But first, a little background. When I moved into this house, the bathroom was the least offensive room. It had been added on in the 1990s and was just dull -- cheap, beige, and builder basic. Other, awful 70s decor was more pressing. Anyway, after 7 years, water damage in the bathroom forced me to do something. I knew that the tub surround would have to be ripped out and so I thought I would get a new and deeper tub, and since the floor needed repairing, I thought I would replace the vinyl with tile. And I decided to add a ventilation fan to prevent future moisture problems. But I had very little money for this unexpected reno, so I wanted to save everything else -- the layout, the vanity, and the toilet. The whole thing turned out to be more complicated than expected because the handyman that I hired discovered that there was a crack in the base of my toilet and extensive damage to the floor. The subfloor was also made of fiberboard, which is not suitable to lay tile on. The poor guy had to take the floor down to the joists (without touching the vanity, which I had spent forever refinishing with Polyshades.)
Here are the befores and afters:
Vanity before:
Vanity after:
Tub before:
Tub After:
Window wall before:
Window wall after:
Old light fixture:
New light fixture:
And here's a closeup of my little art project. I picked some native plants in my garden, pressed them, spray painted them silver and framed them:
Here's a list of budget and sources:
Tile from Home Depot -- $3/foot
Medicine Cabinet -- $32 (final clearance) at Homesense
Soaker Bathtub -- Home Depot, $300
Paint -- Barely Beige, Benjamin Moore
Trim -- Ivory White, Benjamin Moore
Shower curtain -- about $30 on Amazon
Bath Mat -- $20 Pier One
Light fixture -- $100 at Home Depot
Toilet -- used, $75
Blind -- Miscut at Home Depot so 50% off, $22
Glass shelves -- these were my big splurge at $60 each
Towel rod, towel ring, paper holder -- Home Depot, probably
$100 all together.
Most of the accessories are from Dollarama. The frames were $2 each. The tissue box cover was $2. The glass jars were $1 each.
I estimate that, including all materials and labour, the bathroom cost about $3800. I know that that's nothing to sneeze at, but I think it's not bad considering that the handyman had to install new tile board around the tub, new plywood on the floor, and wire in a new ventilation fan, in addition to all the "visible" work.
Thanks for looking at my new bathroom. It makes me smile every time I go there.
Comments (41)
susanwrites
13 years agolast modified: 9 years agokjmama
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DIY budget elegant bathroom, almost done: pics...
Comments (95)I'm very sorry I did not answer the questions from the last few years... I've been out of reno mode for a while :) It's probably too late, but here are the replies: @walkin_yesindeed - the vanity finish has held up just fine. However, it's not the original paint. We sanded and re-painted with new Ben Moore bathroom paint. No issues with dampness (we do run the fan for every shower, though.) @kirkhall - I have NOT been happy with the touted un-stainable-ness of the epoxy grout on the floor. I mean, it's better than regular grout, but it didn't stay white no matter how much I cleaned it. It looks fine, since the tile is multi-toned, but it's definitely not still white. The shower grout, however, has held up extremely well. @SparklingWater - I don't recall the demo being terribly difficult, but that may be because I knew what to expect from other parts of the house. It was tile over a dense cement. @MrsD - I think the grout color is standard white. @MayaEoff - Our tub is the standard 30" size....See MoreMy serenity bathroom makeover final pics
Comments (9)Very, very nice! It is a very tranquil space, well done. A bamboo plant or a bonsai would look great. I think some terra cotta orange towels would compliment your river rock and granite and look fabulous with your blue tile. This room has some similar color tones as yours (although I don't like it as well!)... [Contemporary Bathroom design[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/contemporary-bathroom-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_712~s_2103) by Cincinnati Architect RTA Studio I love your creativity... the mosaics around your other bathroom door are so cool! *Edited to say terra cotta orange TOWELS, not tiles! This post was edited by treasuretheday on Fri, Feb 8, 13 at 13:48...See MoreBudget bathroom makeover reveal
Comments (24)Regarding the mirrors, I purchased some adhesive meant for mirrors (and marble etc) I unscrewed the clips at the top of the mirror and squirted adhesive all down the back, then pushed the mirror back against the wall and re-fastened the clips. I waited 2 days for it to cure, then carefully took off the clips and checked that the mirrors were secure. I used the same adhesive to stick the frame wood to the mirror. The wood was cut at Home Depot to my measurements - the top and bottom 1x4 is 1" longer than the width of the mirror so that it overlaps the edge by 1/2" each side to hide the glass edges. The side boards are the height of the mirror plus 1" then minus 7" for the width of the top and bottom boards (1x4's are actually 3.5" wide). First I glued the crown molding to the top board with carpenter's glue and taped it in place overnight to set. I wanted to make "returns" out of crown but even though I am good at math I was unable to cut those angles with my hand saw and miter box! Turns out you would only be able to see it on the toilet side of the guest bath anyway and it looks OK without. Then I used the mirror adhesive to stick the bottom board in place, taped it, then the side boards on top of that, taped them, then the top board with the crown. I left the blue tape overnight for the adhesive to cure it was solid by morning. I used primed pine boards and crown, so I didn't even have to paint the backs since I was using white - they were already white primer (you can see along the edge in the mirror)....See More2 out of 4 bathrooms done...we're getting there (pics)!
Comments (17)The curved shower rods - if you have one, try Home Goods. They usually carry several at ours, in a few finishes (I know I've seen lots of nickel and ORB). I've seen quite a few ORB ones at TJ Maxx as well. Shower curtains - in natural texture bathrooms, I'm partial to PBS textiles. I can't get enough of the natural fibers. (I've even used a pair of their window panels to make an extra long shower curtain in our master bath). I know they're everyday, but I can't help it. Their mineral raynier line is coming to mind. Here's a close-up of the fabric. I have this line of curtains in a different color scheme and the striping is much more subtle, this is greatly magnified....See More
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diymadnessOriginal Author